On London Extra: Gail's revisited

I knew I was right. Plus Christmas Quiz answers, some very old telly and more

Every paid subscriber helps not just me but an entire London journalism website. Thanks.

Crowing, gloating and boasting "I told you so," are unattractive and deserving of rebuke, but I've decided to indulge in them anyway. After all, I was right. Don't take my word for it. The words that matter are those spoken by the woman who owns one of the independent eateries on Orford Road in Walthamstow Village that some insisted would be driven out by the arrival of a branch of Gail's.

Cast your mind back to the summer, when news broke of the impending arrival of the popular upmarket bakery chain in this picturesque niche of E11 (pictured). A petition was raised against it. Opposition to it was recruited to causes ranging from conservationism to anti-gentrification to hatred of Israel. Masses of media coverage followed, including by me.

Part of my argument was that claims that a Gail's would "push out" little local cafés were premature, shown by both London history and a bit of detective work to be unduly pessimistic. What if, in fact, Gail's proved to be more of a help than a hindrance to the little local enterprises whose continuing existence was claimed to be in peril?

Imagine my gleeful vindication when, having taken my elevenses at a bustling, solicitous, wide-awake Gail's, I heard a very different story from the mouth of the proprietor of one of its supposed victims a few doors down.